Matthews says he's playing Sunday

Oct. 3, 2013

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Clay Matthews was a full participant in practice today and afterward declared that his injured hamstring is healthy enough for him to play Sunday against Detroit.

The outside linebacker injured his hamstring two weeks ago at Cincinnati but apparently got out of the game quickly enough to avoid severe damage. The bye week last week then gave him enough time to heal.

“I'll be out there this Sunday, it's feeling good,” Matthews said after practice today.Matthews has had hamstring issues every season dating back to his rookie year.

He said he and the team doctors determined he should come out of the game at Cincinnati in the second quarter, when it first flared up.

He also said he probably will play in some kind of rotation Sunday so he doesn’t aggravate the injury because his hamstring fatigued.

“I think I need to be smart, not only for me personally coming off the Cincinnati game, but also just the longevity of the season,” Matthews said. “We're only in Week 4. I thought we were doing a good job of that leading up to the Cincinnati game, spelling a few reps here and there for Mike (Neal) or um, so we'll see how it comes. But ultimately I plan on being out there and helping this team.”

Matthews also said that his experience with hamstring injuries has helped him determine that he’s not coming back too soon and risking aggravation.

“I wouldn’t be returning if I had that concern,” he said, “so I feel good ,and hopefully it’s a thing of the past. Hopefully it’s my one for the year.”